A Musical NOT About Love: Essex County Theater's ‘Razorhurst'

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — Ready for a musical not about love? “Razorhurst,” a new musical commissioned by Luna Stage in Essex County, will begin performances Thursday, Feb. 1 and run through March 4.

The second show in Luna’s 25th anniversary season is directed by Luna’s Artistic Director Cheryl Katz with book and lyrics by Kate Mulley and music composed by Andy Peterson. The two-person cast features New Jersey-based performers Catherine Fries Vaughn as Kate Leigh and Claire McClanahan as Tilly Devine.

Luna Theater is located at 555 Valley Road in West Orange, and is part of the Valley Arts District. For tickets and more information visit the Luna website at www.lunastage.org, or call the theater’s box office at (973) 395-5551. The production contains “graphic language.”

“Razorhurst marks the first time Luna has commissioned a musical,” Luna’s Artistic Director Cheryl Katz said. “After the success of ‘Thrill Me’ by Stephen Dolginoff a couple of seasons ago, we wanted to do another musical. We started looking around and realized that part of the reason ‘Thrill Me’ has enjoyed such an incredible life is because there are very few small musicals about something other than romantic love. So, we decided to make one.”

Katz said that since composer Andy Peterson was the musical director for Luna’s production of “Thrill Me,” the theater asked him to pitch some ideas for a new musical.

“Being an Aussie, he pitched ‘Razorhurst,’” Katz joked. “We bit, and soon thereafter writer Kate Mulley, Andy's regular collaborator, joined the team.”

Here’s how Luna Theater describes the play:

“In 1929, the streets of Sydney, Australia ran with blood as a pair of notorious crime bosses led their rival empires to war. The twist? These two crime bosses were women. Kate Leigh and Tilly Devine spent years battling for control of the booze, drug, and prostitution trades. This new musical traces their historical reign as queens of their domains, and asks if they were truly evil ladies - or just enterprising women ahead of their time.”

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Photo: Cheryl Katz (courtesy Luna Theater)